He tells us that among his plans is a proposal to make access fairer to the professions such as law, medicine and the media.

On Bastille Day, we discuss the French parliament's vote this week to ban the niqab - or full face veil. Jonathan Freedland says the move "crosses a line" but that it must be understood with reference to France's culture of secularism.

Burnham meanwhile says that any such law could "never" be enacted in the UK.

We also discuss the sweeping reforms to the NHS as announced in the Commons this week by Andrew Lansley - Burnham's successor as health secretary.

Plus, Peter Mandelson's memoirs have once again opened old wounds in the Labour party. Can the new generation move out of the Blair-Brown shadow?